Casual Manipulation
by Azareth Sakura
Summary: Draco's in love with Hermione, Hermione's rather clueless, Harry and Ron are violently opposed, and Blaise Zabini is the only one who knows what exactly is going on. That's not surprising, seeing as he's the puppet master tugging at the strings.
1. Careful Consideration

Disclaimer: The plot is mine, the characters are not.

Casual Manipulation  
By: Azareth Sakura  
Chapter One: Careful Consideration

Blaise looked around the Great Hall carefully, his beautifully dark eyes narrowed slightly as he looked. They had been back at Hogwarts for almost a month now, and a plan had finally started to take shape in his mind. This would be an excellent plan, The Plan that would bring his best mate out of his miserable state and give him a shred of well-deserved happiness.

Said best mate was currently glowering at his dinner plate, cutting his meat a bit harder than necessary. Draco Malfoy had a problem. Such a problem it was, that most of the seventh year Slytherins had already noticed his miserable state, even though Draco was notoriously good at keeping his emotions from showing. Consequently, the majority of the Slytherins left him alone, fearing for their personal safety. Except for Blaise, that is. But he was Draco Malfoy's best mate, and as his best mate, he was allowed certain allowances the rest of the school was not.

And that was where The Plan came in.

You see, over the summer while Blaise was vacationing in his Italian villa, Draco had come with. And that's when Blaise had realized Draco's brooding mood hiding beneath his usual sarcastic nature. Actually, the more Blaise thought about it, Draco had been acting funny for a while before summer; he had just never paid it any mind. But that was not important.

What _was_ important, was that once he realized something was plaguing Draco, he'd made every attempt he could think of to figure out what it was. Surprised as he was that Blaise had cottoned onto his sentiments (not that he outwardly expressed his surprise), he refused to tell. Too bad Blaise was very cunning, very persuasive, and very Slytherin. Oh, and a ridiculously good looking best mate as well. Naturally.

He had finally figured when they had gone to a restaurant where two beautiful girls had been sending them looks all throughout the meal. Blaise had smiled at them before dessert, and motioned for them to come over and sit. He had fully enjoyed his companion's presence that day, but Draco had done nothing but sit there a bit sullenly and eat his dessert, occasionally answering the girl's questions.

That's when he realized Draco had not been with a girl for a while.

That's also when he realized that the problem could only be one of two things: a girl or that Draco was gay.

He had seriously hoped it was the former.

That night he confronted Draco about his suspicions. Well, more like, he burst into Draco's room and…

**FLASHBACK**:

"_DRACO!" Blaise exclaimed as he barged into Draco's room._

_Draco looked up at him annoyed, from where he had been just about to change into his pajamas and go to bed. "What?" he asked in an exasperated tone._

"_Are you gay?" Blaise asked, "Because if you are, no matter what, I will still be your best mate. So long as you're not in love with me, that is."_

"…_You've gone mad," Draco said as he stared at Blaise in horror, "I like girls, you git."_

"_AHA! It's a girl then!" Blaise exclaimed._

"_What are you talking about?"_

"_You've been acting strange all summer, and you haven't been with a girl in a while. I know you won't tell me what it is, but I've figured out that it's a girl. Tell me who she is, and we'll figure out how to stop you from being this way."_

_"Leave me alone, Blaise."_

_"Not until you tell me who she is."_

_"I said, **leave me alone**." Draco was starting to get angry now and Blaise could tell. But he wasn't about to back down now, or he'd never know._

_"I won't tell anyone, you know that. Just tell me who she is!"_

_"IT'S GRANGER, ALRIGHT?" Draco burst out. "HERMIONE BLEEDING GRANGER." He repeated in a broken tone Blaise had never heard him take on._

_Blaise's initial reaction had been to laugh and tell him to be serious, but that tone coupled with the devastated look on Draco's face made him believe the truth._

_Draco Malfoy was in love with Hermione Granger._

_And Blaise Zabini was going to get them together._

**END FLASHBACK**.

Blaise continued gazing around the Great Hall, this time finally resting his eyes on the Gryffindor table. Hermione Granger, Gryffindor's princess and all around know-it-all was sitting there eating with what Blaise deemed to be her two bodyguards (Harry Potter and Ron Weasley), Ginny Weasley, Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, and the rest of the seventh year Gryffindors.

He realized that in order for his plan to work (which it most definitely would, he was getting sick of Draco's moping and whining) he would need to be able to get Hermione away from her two self-proclaimed protectors.

There was only one place, where he knew for certain, he'd be able to catch her alone— the library. It seemed as though luck was on his side tonight, because at that very moment, the Head Girl finished her dinner, bade what Blaise assumed to be a farewell to her friends, stood, and walked out of the Great Hall (by herself) to (where he presumed) the library.

Glancing around his own table quickly to see if anyone had been watching him watch the Gryffindors (none had), Blaise decided to take this opportunity to set his plan in motion.

"Draco." He said, getting the attention of his gray-eyed friend.

"What is it Zabini, I'm eating here." He replied somewhat moodily.

"Cheer up, mate, you're Head Boy, she's Head Girl, you both sleep in the same tower, things'll pick up eventually."

Draco muttered unintelligibly and Blaise plowed on, "Just continue being nice to her, alright? I've got some business to attend to now, I'll see you later." And so he rose from his seat, not missing Draco narrowing his eyes.

"What sort of business?" he asked suspiciously.

"Not the sort our dear old Head Boy would be interested in." Blaise smirked at Draco before leaving the Great Hall and heading toward the library.

Blaise entered the library, immediately searching for Hermione. He found her at her usual table, surrounded by several thick books, many pieces of parchment, spare quills, and a jar of jet-black ink. She had not noticed his presence as she was too wrapped up in her studies (as well as the fact that Blaise was every bit the sneaky silent sort of Slytherin), and so he decided to announce himself (politely) by clearing his throat.

Hermione looked up, saw Blaise, and he watched in slight fascination as her expressions changed swiftly from mild annoyance, to some sort of mixture of blatant distrust and curiosity. "Zabini?"

Blaise said nothing but continued to study her face for a few moments.

"Zabini! What is it?" She scowled at him as he continued to look at her in silence.

Finally he sighed and looked down. "I need your help," he admitted resignedly as he looked up at her face again.

The astonishment on her face was easy to read. "_My_ help? Whatever for?" She asked.

"I have a problem." He began.

"So I realized." He gave her a pointed look. "Continue."

"Actually, it's Draco who has the problem."

"Malfoy?" She cried, "Malfoy has a problem-

"Would you at least hear me out?" He petitioned, "You're the Head Girl, it's your duty to help when asked, and I'm just asking for you to listen to me."

"Fine. You have five minutes to talk, and then I'm leaving."

"See, there's this girl... and Draco sort of is in love with her. It's tearing him up though, because she hates him and there's really nothing he can do to make her change her mind about him since he's been such a prick to her and her friends since he'd met her."

"Heartbreaking." Hermione said, rather dryly. "I fail to see why you need my help though."

"Honestly, and you're the brightest witch of our age? That girl? She's you."

Hermione began laughing rather loudly, earning her a reproving glare and "SHH!" from Madam Pince, and a strange look from Blaise.

"I think you're a bit touched in the head, Zabini. Malfoy hates me. All I am to him is a dirty little mudblood, unfit to breathe the same air as he does. This joke or whatever it is you're trying to pull won't work on me, Zabini, so you might as well leave me to my Transfiguration essay."

It was a dismissal, and both knew it.

"Granger, have I ever given you a reason to distrust me? In our seven years at school together, I've never done anything to you or your friends, in fact, I don't really recall ever speaking to you much if at all. I've never even once called you a mudblood, or even thought of it. I didn't grow up with Death Eaters for parents, as you may know- my mum's too busy being beautiful and fashionable to bother with the Dark Arts, and my father has been dead for a while. I'm a Slytherin by nature only, and the fact that my family's been in Slytherin for most of the past generations. I'm decidedly neutral in the war. I'm accepted by the rest of the Slytherins because I _am_ one of them, and because I am one of them, the rest of the school _doesn't_ accept me (Hermione noted this to be a slight exaggeration on his part; he had plenty of female followers in all of the houses due to his handsome features, Italian charm, and clever mind). So won't you just believe me? _Please_?"

Hermione sighed. He was right, and once again, they both knew it. "Alright, it's not you I've got a problem with, but honestly... _Malfoy_?"

"Has _he_ even called you a mudblood once this year?"

At that, Hermione paused and thought back through the year. Blaise was right; Malfoy _had_ been unusually quiet this year. He hadn't stopped teasing Harry and Ron, but he had stopped teasing her (a fact which the Golden Trio had actually picked up on and puzzled over for a couple of days), and never once did she hear him say the word, "mudblood." She had assumed it was since they were the Head students together fighting and arguing every waking moment of their lives would get very tiring. No matter what the reason though, Blaise was right, and judging by the knowing smirk on his face, he knew she knew.

"Oh alright fine. You're right. Happy now?" Blaise's smirk grew wider (if at all possible).

"Very." He replied smoothly, still smirking (damn him).

Hermione sighed and met his gaze. "Can I go back to my homework now?" She asked in a sort of whining tone even though she knew he wasn't finished.

"Almost," he said. "Just listen to my plan, alright?"

"Make it quick." She commanded.

"Right. Well, I have a plan to get him to stop being so miserable. It involves you..."

"If you think you're going to convince me to date him as your plan, sod off and forget it."

"That's not it at all," he replied silkily. "Hermione Granger, I'd like to ask you to be my girlfriend."

**Author's Notes**: _Yes_, this is a Draco/Hermione story. Give me some time, and keep reading (:


	2. Initiating Incentives

* * *

Disclaimer: The plot is mine, the characters are not.

* * *

Casual Manipulation  
By: Azareth Sakura  
Chapter Two: Initiating Incentives

Ron's stomach grumbled. _Loudly_. So loudly, that his best mate for seven years, The Boy-Who-Lived, Harry Potter heard it, and laughed. _Laughed_. As if food matters could even _be_ laughing matters, Ron thought. He shot an indignant look at Harry before he rolled over on his bed and shoved his head under the pillow, scowling in irritation.

Laughingly, Harry said, "Hey, Ron, let's go to the kitchens and get you some food... even though you _just_ ate dinner." He laughed some more.

Ron brought his head up from under the pillow. "Really?" He said eagerly, "Well then, grab the map! Let's go!" Harry obligingly dug through his trunk for the parchment and then grabbed his wand.

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

All at once the little black ink lines that made up the map of the halls of Hogwarts came into focus, building the blueprints in an instant. Outside of Gryffindor Tower there were no professors, ghosts or Filch. Harry and Ron considered this lucky, and just as Harry was about to wipe the map clean, he saw something that made his head turn.

There, at the library, were two sets of footsteps walking out of the library _together_. Harry's eyes widened.

"What's Hermione doing walking with Blaise Zabini?" He asked Ron, shocked.

"She'd never willingly speak to him," Ron said, "what if he's hurting her?"

The two boys looked at each other, at the map, and then back at each other before bolting out of the dormitory, headed full speed for the library.

Draco sighed. _Again_. He was lying on one of the sofas in the Head's common room (the green one, of course), sprawled out thinking back to the past summer. After he told Blaise his secret (he refused to acknowledge that he felt better now that _someone_ knew, even if it was a stupid twat like Blaise) the two of them had set to work on creating a plan to get Hermione to fall for Draco (once again, he ignored the thankful feelings he had for Blaise being a true friend).

He remembered how he sat backwards in a chair, his head resting on one hand, where his fingers mussed up his uniquely colored blonde hair as he watched Blaise pace before him. Blaise walked and talked, occasionally taking bites out of a chocolate crème puff the house elves had brought up for the boys. This part of the plan had been called "Identification, Assessment, and Damage Control," and it was, in Draco's opinion, pretty intense. "If you want to get anywhere with Granger," Blaise had said, "you're going to have to give up a lot. Things won't go your way for a while, a long while, but…" he paused and gave Draco a piercing sort of stare, "you'll have to hang on. Eventually, she will warm up to you. And then, you will strike!" He exclaimed suddenly, "You will make your move, and Granger will be yours for the taking."

Draco had been listening raptly, besotted with the image Blaise was painting of him as the persevering knight-in-shining armor sort of bloke who would, after all trials and tribulations, get the girl, and live happily ever after. He pondered this for a moment. Was he _really_ alright with a happily ever after with Hermione? He knew he couldn't picture his future any other way— he _had_ been in love with her, starting third year when she slapped him. Besides, the idea of waking up to her every morning, everyday for the rest of his life was a beautiful one.

Blaise had gotten in his face then, for not paying attention to what he was saying, "It's that sort of behavior that'll have Granger deem you unworthy of her time and affections," he'd ranted. He had then continued on to list out several of Draco's faults and flaws (which irritated Draco like no other; it wasn't as though Blaise was some sort of saint either), before the two of them and broken down each one and figured out how to change it for the better.

For example, they had worked tirelessly until Draco could say "Muggle-born" without first meaning to say "Mudblood." This was a feat he was particularly proud of, for he had grown up in a racist pureblooded home, where the term was used in daily conversation. Another thing the two had done was perfect Draco's treatment of House Elves.

Both Slytherins, as well as pretty much the rest of the student body knew of Hermione Granger's apparent dislike for the enslavement of House Elves (though everyone else knew they liked being servants). "For you to get on Granger's good side," Blaise had explained, "you need to be nice to House Elves. She'd appreciate that sort of thing." Draco had scowled, but nevertheless learned to watch what he said to the elves.

They had initially been slightly fearful (and very wary) of this new behavior, but as the summer progressed, they became accustomed to it, and Draco found that his food tasted better, and their services in general had been better than before as well. Maybe there _was_ something to this politeness bit he mused to himself.

Returning his thoughts to the present, Draco mulled over what Blaise had suggested earlier that afternoon while the two boys had been idly playing a game of Quidditch. He had said that Draco's initial civility was doing well for their plan, so it was safe for him to proceed on further into the plan.

**Step One**: **Be nice**. **_Really_ nice**.

"_Hermione Granger, I'd like to ask you to be my girlfriend."_

_"be my girlfriend."  
"be my girlfriend."  
"be my girlfriend." _

Hermione froze as the phrase repeated itself over and over inside her mind. Time seemed to stop, the world seemed to end, and almost a minute passed before she unfroze her features long enough to blink once. Blaise raised one of his perfectly shaped (in a completely masculine sense, of course) gorgeous raven-colored eyebrows as she started to laugh. _Loudly_.

That was the last straw. For Madam Pince, that is. She angrily stormed over to the Head Girl and told her to remove herself from the library; she was quite finished with it for the night. Hermione rose and gathered her things, still laughing. Blaise was rather confused. Seventeen years of good breeding, yet none of his etiquette lessons ever mentioned what to do when the person with whom one is conversing bursts into loud, maniacal, and uncontrollable laughter (which doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon). So he said nothing, but followed her as she laughed her way out the door.

"Granger." He said as he grabbed her arm to stop her from giggling all the way up to the Head's Tower. "_What_ is so funny?"

Hermione took a breath to stop laughing, but found she was unable. Blaise looked on in growing irritation.

About five minutes later, her laughter subsided (somewhat) and she took in several large, gasping quantities of air before she asked, "You want _me_ to be _your_ girlfriend?"

"That is correct."

"And your best mate fancies me."

"Affirmative."

"_And you want me to be your girlfriend_?"

"I thought we went over that one already."

"_Why_?"

"You don't like Draco, right?"

"I don't _hate_ him."

"Ooh, this is good. She doesn't hate him!" Blaise muttered to himself, more plans forming in his sneaky, conniving mind.

"Come again?"

"If a boy fancies a girl, eventually he's going to tell her how he feels, right? When he feels like he just can't keep it a secret anymore, right?"

"I suppose so."

"What better way, to save yourself from the awkward rejecting by already having a boyfriend? That way he'll be able to move on without suffering too much heartbreak. With me so far?"

"Yes…" Hermione said slowly, mulling it over in her mind. Blaise's idea wasn't actually a horrible one, even if his reasoning for asking her out was a complete and total lie (but he'd never tell her that).

"And wouldn't it be horrible of you if you selected someone to play the part of boyfriend with_out_ them knowing that you were using them to dissuade Draco?"

"I would never-

"Yes, yes, I know, you're too much of a Gryffindor to ever do that to someone, blah, blah, blah. The fact of the matter is, I'm offering someone for you to use; I'm offering myself to you: Blaise Zabini, at your service."

Struggling with herself for a moment to hold in the laughter that was bubbling up inside of her, Hermione tried to keep a grasp on her rational thought.

"What's in it for you? If you're Malfoy's best mate, why would you even consider asking me out? Isn't there some unwritten rule about asking out your best mate's crush?"

"First of all, my dear," Blaise began as he stepped closer to her, "You don't know Draco like I do. Draco Malfoy does _not_ get crushes, on _anyone_." Hermione stepped back as Blaise continued to come closer. "Secondly," he continued as he cornered Hermione between a wall and himself, laying both his hands at either side of body, so she was trapped there, "Draco didn't actually _say_ he fancies you.." Blaise was lying through his teeth, but Hermione would never know. Besides, it was all for The Plan, and she and Draco would eventually be much better off for it.

"_Really_ now?" Hermione raised an eyebrow as she ceased her struggles for a moment. "Then how, pray tell, do you gather he's in love with me?"

Blaise caressed her cheek gently before trailing his hand down her neck, her shoulder, and her arm, before finally firmly settling on her waist. He leaned in close to whisper in her ear, "He doesn't need to tell me, I just _know_ it. He's my best mate, Granger, he _stares_ at you all the time. Not glaring, staring. He creates problems for those two bodyguards of yours, but not for you."

Hermione's eyes flickered shut as Blaise's hot breath tickled her ear. She tried unsuccessfully to suppress her shudder (which, as Blaise knew, was most decidedly _not_ from the cold). He smirked, knowing he had her right where he wanted her; body full in betrayal of her rational thought, he knew she'd agree to The Plan (albeit unknowingly).

"So answer me, _Cara mia_," Blaise smirked again; **no **girl had ever been able to resist him when he broke out his native Italian.

"Ans-answer you w-what?" Hermione stuttered, as she was having trouble with rational thought. Blaise's proximity coupled with his delicious scent was driving her body crazy.

"Be my girlfriend." He repeated, kissing her softly under the ear. This turned out to be a rather sensitive spot, as she gasped and arched directly into his touch.

"_Be my girlfriend…_" the words once again resounded in Hermione's mind, and served to help break the spell Blaise's charm had been casting on her. Her eyes flew open, and her face took on a horrified expression.

Unprepared as he was for her reaction, Hermione was able to push past him and moved so that she was standing behind him, away from the wall.

"Granger-

"Hermione!"

Both Hermione and Blaise turned around to find Harry and Ron in the corridor, racing towards them. The two boys stood in front of Hermione, protecting her from Blaise (and blocking his view of her) as Harry asked her if she was all right.

"Was Zabini bothering you?" he asked her, his green eyes filled with curiosity.

"Yeah, because if was then Harry and I can beat him up for you, Hermione." Ron added.

Hermione smiled and said, "Don't worry about it, boys. Zabini was just asking me something about his patrol schedule since he's a prefect. Everything's fine." Harry nodded, and Ron scowled at Blaise before the trio turned to leave. Before they could though, Blaise's voice stopped them.

"Granger, just think about everything I told you.."

"I will."

"And, Granger?"

"Yes?"

"My offer will still be standing when you make up your mind."

Hermione nodded quickly as she grabbed the boys' arms and pulled them out of the corridor, studiously ignoring the quizzical looks they were giving her.

Blaise sighed and held his head in his hands for a moment, cursing quietly to himself. That had **not** been a part of The Plan. He was now starting to wonder whether or not The Plan would even take flight, considering Granger had not completely fallen prey to his charms as he had expected. Besides, it was uncanny how her bodyguards always seemed to show up whenever they weren't wanted, the sodding gits.

It was then when another thought came to him— Granger had smelled _nice_… she'd even felt _good_ pressed up against him, her flesh molding with his.. and she had been able to throw him off his game right at the height of it. Draco was right about her, she **wasn't** like the other girls they knew.

Blaise straightened up to his full height and put on a determined face. He was Blaise Zabini, damnit, and if there was _anyone_ who could see this love story through without the players of the play noticing it (until it was too late at least) it was him. As cold and calculating as Draco was, he was not as observant as the Blaise. And since he noticed things which most people tended to ignore, he would be able to show Granger just how much Draco had changed and thus sway her over to The Plan. He _would_ because he was Blaise Zabini, and he did **not** give up.

With that thought in mind, and a renewed sense of purpose, Blaise walked back to the Slytherin dorms, considering a multitude of varying additions to The Plan.

Hermione walked swiftly, very swiftly, almost running to the Head's Tower as Harry and Ron followed her (they insisted on walking her back). She was eager to get back (so she could finish her essay), and more importantly, escape from Blaise (and to **not** think about the ideas he had planted in her head). She slowed down as she reached the portrait, gave the password, then stepped into the common room, her two boys on her heels. She sighed and sank down on one of the sofas, setting her things down on the carpet next to her feet as she closed her eyes and massaged her temples for a moment.

"What was Zabini _really _telling you before we got there, Hermione?" Ron asked her. "If it were really something about patrols wouldn't he ask Malfoy since they're both, you know, Slytherin? Their lot always sticks together." Harry nodded and trained his thoughtful gaze on her. At the mention of Blaise's name Malfoy looked up.

Malfoy had been sitting in the common room doing some work for Potions when Hermione and company had come in. He had been about to say something when he realized they hadn't noticed he was also in the room. Stealthily, he crept up to his room where he left the door slightly open so he could hear what the Gryffindors were saying about Blaise. He wondered if it had anything to do with the business Blaise had mentioned when he left dinner, or if it had to do with their plan.

"I already told you it was nothing," Hermione replied, in a slightly exasperated tone. "He probably couldn't find Malfoy and that's why he came and asked me. Now I have an essay to write so you two better go back to Gryffindor Tower before you get caught for sneaking around after curfew."

The two boys agreed, and she hugged them both as they all said goodnight to each other. Draco was hit with small pangs of jealousy as he watched them interact. After the wonder idiots left, she sank down on that sofa again, and sighed. He watched her carefully and noted that she had come in looking a bit worse for the wear. He cleared his throat as he walked down the stairs. "Alright there, Granger?"

Immediately, Hermione's eyes flew open, widening in horror. Her face drained of its color, and noticing this, Malfoy asked her again, this time uncertain, "Alright there… Granger…?"

"Y-yes." Hermione forced out, "J-just a bit tir-tired," she started to gather her things again, desiring very much to flee to the safety and solitude of her room.

_Be nice, be nice, be nice, be nice_, Draco chanted in his head. It was his new mantra, one that Blaise had introduced him to during the summer in Italy when he decided to help Draco out with his Hermione-situation. Blaise had told him to be nice to Hermione, try not to fight as much with Potter and Weasley, and to be charming and attentive to the Head Girl. Blaise had also muttered on occasion about needing a plan, but whenever Draco had asked him about it, Blaise would tell him to practice being nice. Draco scoffed at this, for he knew he was plenty nice (his mentality was a little warped).

"You don't look so well," Draco began, a bit hesitantly. "Are you sure you don't want me to help you to the Hospital Wing? Or perhaps get you a Pepper Up Potion?"

Hermione turned from the stairs she was walking up and stared at him. _Alright_, she thought, _who is he and what has he done with Malfoy_. True, Malfoy had been decent before her conversation with Blaise, but he hadn't been deliberately _nice_. It was strange. Unsettling. Blaise's voice came unbidden in her mind, _What better way, to save yourself from the awkward rejecting by already having a boyfriend?_ What better way indeed.

But accepting that would mean accepting Blaise's proposal. And that was a bad idea. A very, _very_, bad idea. Nevertheless, try as she might, Hermione could not get the fact that Blaise's idea would probably work. Not to mention it would stop Malfoy's strange behavior. She didn't mind it so much as she wasn't used to it. Really.

A couple of minutes passed as she was thinking all this, and Draco was getting slightly impatient (he wasn't used to being ignored). "Granger?" he asked, the impatience noticeable in his tone.

"Hmm?" she replied rather absently, her mind still wrapped around her earlier incident.

"Honestly, Granger, I'm trying to be nice here and you're completely ignoring me. What are you, daft? You crazy bint-

Draco took note of her once again glazed appearance, "ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME!" He glowered petulantly at her.

"What? Oh. Yes. I'm listening." Hermione seemed to have snapped out of her trance, "I'm just going to go to bed now, but thanks for the offer."

"Goodnight then I guess.." Draco trailed off. Hermione nodded uncertainly before continuing up the stairs and into her room.

Draco plopped back down on the sofa and sighed. He was acting very unlike himself. Normally he was cool, calm, collected, and very suave. He didn't need to do much to get girls- well, _anyone_ really, to fall all over him, but he knew none of that would work on Hermione. His money, looks, even his Quidditch skills- none of that would help him with her. He figured she'd probably value his mind (his marks were second only to hers), but most definitely not his attitude. So that was why he was following Blaise's "be nice" suggestion.

The only problem was that "being nice" was not really a part of being Draco Malfoy. He felt fake and to be perfectly honest, a little stupid for resorting to acting like dare he say it, _Potter_, or one of those other bloody Gryffindors.

And Draco Malfoy was no bloody Gryffindor.

But Hermione was, and would not be impressed by him if he was a great big sodding prick as he had been. And so he returned to his original mantra, "be nice, be nice, be nice…"

* * *

To my readers:  
**Junsui** – There'll be _some_ cool Blaise stuff sprinkled throughout the story :p if you keep reading it that is. I gave you a little taste of it in this chapter, but that is only the beginning haha.

**Nothing Rhymes With Orange** – I'm glad you liked chapter one. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well, and I promise that you should be pleasantly surprised by the outcome of the story. I'd love to hear your theories on what the plan is, btw.

**Ezarine Bloom** – Yeah, the parenthesis is kind of odd. I tend to make a lot of side comments in real life, so the stuff in the parenthesis is similar to that. It's a bunch of snarky, sarcastic things that whichever character's P.O.V. I'm in at the moment (read Author's Note for this) is feeling or thinking. Sometimes it's my own little side comments too :p I'm glad you liked the story and think its unique and has potential. That means a lot to me.

**Meinna7** - :x?

**Dogstar-ebony** – I'm trying _very_ hard not to drag out the story. Because I happen to hate it when that happens ; Blaise actually has two plans. The Plan, and the plan he concocted with Draco over the summer. Stay tuned to see them both in action (:

**Memememeeeeee** – Your wait is over! I hope it was worth the wait.

**Demoness-MarlstonWells69ner** – Don't worry, I'll get to all the character descriptions when they flow in with the rest of the part I'm writing. I'm also kind of not going to fully detail what they look like because honestly, I'd prefer it if you read this with _your own_ mental images of the characters in mind. It helps make you a bigger part of the story, and I just kind of like that, ya know?

**NelStar7** – I hope you like this chapter just as much as chapter one. And that you like the rest of it as it keeps on coming. Thanks for reading (:

**Fallenwings11** – Updated!

**D.M. lover** – Blaise's plans are pretty trippy. You'll see how it goes :

**Lilian** – Your wait is over!

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Author's Note: Here's chapter two for you. I hope you liked reading it, and are intrigued enough to continue reading my story, because I think you'll be surprised at the outcome. Once again, I want to reiterate that though **right now** it doesn't look like it, this _will_ be a Draco/Hermione story. Rawr. There are a couple of things I want to discuss in this note before I go to bed (it's almost 5A.M. and I'm getting kind of tired :x).

First of all: you'll notice that what I refer to the characters changes; sometimes I will use their first names, and sometimes I will use their surnames while **not** in dialogue. This is because I'm _sort of_ writing it in different points-of-view. For instance, if it's in Draco's p.o.v. then Hermione will be Hermione, while Harry and Ron will be Potter and Weasley (or Potty and the Weasel). Similarly, if it's in Blaise's p.o.v. he will refer to the Gryffindors by their last names and Draco and Pansy by their first names.

Second: As I've explained in one of my "to the readers," Blaise has two plans. One is, of course, The Plan, where he asks Hermione to be his girlfriend (don't worry, I will revisit this soon). the other one is the one he came up with in the summer with Draco to help him win her over. It, however, does not work like it was supposed to and well, you'll see how badly Draco botches it up later.

Third: I'm a first year at U.C. Berkeley. I'm also kind of a lazy bum. I won't write unless I'm in the mood, because the story will suck if I force myself to write when I don't feel like it (plus the story won't flow as well). So I hope you'll bear with me as I take forever to update, but I'll try not to be such a procrastinator.

Thanks for reading (:


	3. Plotting Perfection

Disclaimer: The plot is mine, the characters are not.

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Casual Manipulation  
By: Azareth Sakura  
Chapter Three: Plotting Perfection

The Head's Tower was rather spacious, considering the total population of residents in it amounted to two. The entryway to the tower was charmed to look like the regular walls of Hogwarts, and charmed to allow only the Head Boy and Girl, as well as the faculty in it after three taps on the wall with said person's wand. Guests were allowed in the tower so long as they walked in while the door was open after the person who had let them in walked in. Upon entrance, there was a comfortably cozy common room, with a few squashy couches and chairs surrounding an intricate coffee table before the fireplace. The floors were a dark cherry wood, and several pale blue colored carpets covered parts of the floor. In the back of the room, there were two sets of stairs leading to the rooms of the Head Boy and Head Girl, covered with a green and red colored carpet respectively.

Each room was large enough for the student, and was accompanied by its own bathroom of moderate size. The rooms were decorated in each student's house colors, while the common room was decorated with no specific color. It was this room Hermione retired to upon exiting her confusing confrontation with Malfoy. Sure, he had been civil to her since they had become Heads, but never this friendly, caring, or concerned. On the way back to her dormitory with Harry and Ron, she had decided to dismiss all that Blaise had told her as a joke between the two Slytherins. Malfoy's behavior, however, struck her as decidedly odd, and she wondered whether or not the situation was all a big coincidence.

Malfoy and Zabini's farce was well crafted, she'd admitted to herself, for she could figure no way of determining the validity of Blaise's claims without resorting to Veritaserum or something of the like. Thoroughly perplexed, Hermione sighed. She closed the Charms book which had been open on her lap, and placed it on her desk. Her thoughts were too distracted by Malfoy and Zabini; she would get no more work done tonight. That essay Professor Flitwick assigned for next week would just have to wait until tomorrow. Hermione mentally adjusted her schedule for the following day as she lay in bed, in the darkness. This normally helped her fall asleep, but for tonight, sleep was particularly elusive.

It was about two in the morning when Hermione finally fell into a fitful sleep.

She was in the library, reading, when a shadow fell before her, making the text hard to read. Startled, Hermione looked up and stared smack into a pair of beautiful dark eyes staring intensely at her.

"Z-Zabini?" She asked as he put his hands on the back of the chair on either side of her shoulders and leaned forward. She could lean back no more in the chair, and Zabini was way past getting in her personal space. She shifted uncomfortably and he smirked a little before leaning all the way forward and kissing her briefly.

He pulled back, and Hermione's eyes widened as she stared up at him. "What was that about?" She asked, more shocked than angry.

"Hermione Granger." He stated simply, as he cocked his head to the right and regarded her intently. "I want you, Hermione Granger," he smiled prettily, revealing his perfect white teeth, "I want you to be my girlfriend."

Blaise leaned back, and offered his hand to Hermione. Hesitantly, she accepted it, and he pulled her up and out of the chair.

They were in the Great Hall now. The tables had been put away, and smaller, round tables lined the walls. The center was cleared, and students stood there, in two lines, waiting. He took her hand, and raised it to his lips, pressing a gentle kiss upon it, before bowing. Blushing prettily, Hermione curtsied low, trying to see the eyes behind the mask.

The music started.

He swept her up, and twirled her around. The students danced together with their partners, like something out of the Regency era. He spun her into his arms, and then out, before reclaiming her hand and continuing the dance. The other couples moved to give them room in the center, because their dance was the only one quite so passionate. As the music sped up, so did they, spinning and twirling and moving perfectly to the beat. They continued, gaining the admiration of their peers, until finally, the music slowed. Slowly and carefully, he dipped her.

The music stopped.

They stared carefully at each other before he kissed her softly and let her up. Hermione reached over to his face, and slowly pulled off his mask.

She gasped.

Staring back at her, as though she were the only person in the world, was Draco Malfoy.

He leaned in to kiss her again, when out of nowhere he was punched in the face. Hermione was ripped from his arms and pushed behind the newcomer.

It was Blaise Zabini! Hermione closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. This could _not_ get any worse. The two boys were glowering at each other, and both were preparing to launch themselves at one another, ready to maim.

"NO!" Cried Hermione as she sat up, eyes opened wide. Her heavy breathing returned to normal, and she calmed down, realizing that it had all been a dream, and she was in her room, alone. Belatedly, she noticed that someone was banging on her bedroom door.

"Granger? Open up! What was that scream I just heard? Are you alright? Open this door!"

"Malfoy?" Hermione called.

"Well, who else would it be, the bloody queen of England?" Hermione bit back a laugh as she got out of bed and opened the door. Malfoy stood out there, hair delightfully rumpled, clad in naught but a pair of green silk boxers.

"It was nothing, Malfoy, just a…kind of bad dream." She said. "Go back to bed."

"Do you… do you want to talk about it…?" He asked

Hermione raised an eyebrow. Since when did Draco Malfoy want to talk about _anything_, especially with her? Her thoughts were drawn immediately to what Zabini had said, and for the second time that night she wondered whether or not he had been serious. Malfoy's behavior was just too peculiar.

"Granger?" He asked again, slightly put out by her lack of response.

"No, that's alright," she replied finally, "It was silly and I'm fine."

"Alright..." he said hesitantly. "If you need anything though, Granger, I'll be around."

Hermione started at this and opened her mouth to speak. "Why are you being so nice to me, Malfoy?"

"What do you mean?"

"Oh come on, don't play so innocent. Up until this year, you've been a downright prick to me."

"I've changed, Granger." He said simply.

Hermione shook her head, crossed her arms, and stared defiantly at him. "You're up to something, Malfoy, and I'm going to find out what. Goodnight." She closed the door behind her and went back to her bed, where she lay staring up at her ceiling until she was able to fall into a quieter sleep.

Draco stood outside her room for some time after she had gone back to bed, staring at her door and wondering if he'd ever make it past her dislike for him. He sighed loudly before trudging back to his room to sleep.

In the morning, Hermione woke up early, to sunny skies, which was rare, but not unwelcome for late October. Cheerfully, she got out of bed, showered, dressed, and skipped off toward the Great Hall for some breakfast. Recalling last night's events, Hermione quickly came to a resolution. Practically minded as she was, she decided that _if_ Malfoy wasn't up to something, then he was probably only being polite to her because they were both Head students. As strange as that sounded, Hermione believed in second chances, and decided she would take Malfoy's transformation with grace. She would pay him no mind (as per usual), and if he truly proved himself to be changed, then she would have no trouble accepting his politeness, weird and unusual as it was.

Not too many people were at the Gryffindor table since it was still quite early. The Ravenclaw table had significantly more people, however, and upon noticing the Head Girl's entrance, a few of them left the table to sit by her and ask her questions about Friday's meeting with the prefects. Malfoy had set up a Quidditch practice that coincided with the meeting, so he had requested they move it back by an hour. Not wanting to start an argument, Hermione had agreed, and the prefects from Ravenclaw just wanted to double-check the timing.

After several more minutes of conversation with the Ravenclaws while eating her breakfast, more and more students began to trickle into the Great Hall. The Ravenclaws left and Hermione busied herself with checking over her Defense Against the Dark Arts essay for the fifth time while talking to Neville. Classes were due to begin in ten minutes when Harry and Ron finally burst into the room, with angry expressions on their faces.

"What's wrong with you two?" asked Hermione.

"That bloody git Malfoy," grumbled Ron whilst chewing.

Hermione wrinkled her nose distastefully as she asked, "What did he do? And Ron, don't talk with your mouth full; it's disgusting."

Ron shot her a dirty look and swallowed before replying, "His usual. Said things about Harry and I was about to punch him, but he wasn't really worth it so we walked in here."

Hermione's eyebrows shot up in surprise. So much for Malfoy's changed ways, she thought to herself before saying, "That's really good, Ron. I'm proud of you for realizing that." She said as she beamed at him.

"Actually," Harry said, after swallowing a bite of toast, "I had to drag him away from Malfoy, telling him that."

"Oh." Hermione replied, the smile dimming slightly. The three of them realized the time, and Harry and Ron grabbed a few muffins to eat on the way to class. Hermione good-naturedly chided them on their perpetual late nights as the three of them headed off to DADA.

The rest of the day passed with little difficulty. Hermione didn't see Malfoy much, because the Gryffindors didn't have any classes with Slytherins, and she busied herself with reading over her Potions text in the Gryffindor common room until late in the night before turning in.

Friday morning and afternoon passed in a similar fashion. Hermione was too preoccupied in class taking notes and answering questions to notice the frequent glances Malfoy sent at her. Unfortunately, Ron did, and poked Harry in the ribs.

"Ow! What the hell, Ron?"

"Harry! Mate, take a look at Malfoy."

"What's he doing?"

"He keeps looking at Hermione. Just watch him for a few minutes." Discreetly, Harry kept an eye on Malfoy for about a minute, before turning back to his hushed conversation with Ron.

"You're right!"

"What's he playing at? You think he's out to get her?"

"I dunno, mate." replied Harry perplexedly. His eyebrows knitted together as he studied Malfoy's expression carefully. "He doesn't look really suspicious. If anything, he looks kind of…_longing_."

The two boys looked at each other with wide eyes before turning to see Malfoy still glancing at Hermione. Malfoy sighed (longingly), and the two boys turned back to each other.

"No way." Said Harry.

"Absolutely not." Said Ron.

And so, with an odd, uneasy feeling in their guts, the two boys dismissed the notion entirely.

"I'm telling you, Hermione, the sodding prat was staring at you all through class today." Ron informed her on the way to the prefects meeting room.

"Don't be silly, Ron, I'm sure you were imagining things."

"Harry too?" Ron shot back in an indignant tone.

"Well," began Hermione in a bossy, testy tone, "The both of you don't get to bed until late, doing whatever it is you two do. He was probably just looking in our general direction, and due to your tiredness or boredom, one of you got the notion that he was staring at me, and the other, for the same reason, believed it."

"Give me a break, Hermione—

"OH LOOK," Hermione announced in a loud, overly cheerful tone, "we're here." She opened the door and continued to the head of the table, where Malfoy stood, and pulled out her chair for her to sit down.

More than just a few eyebrows rose at this display, and slightly bewildered, Hermione sat slowly, and thanked him in a confused tone.

"Remember, everyone, it's our job to make sure everyone going to Hogsmeade tomorrow has permission from their parents. This means that you can't go until all the students have left." Announced Hermione.

There was a collective groan from the prefects.

"Any questions?" asked Malfoy. "No? Good. Meeting adjourned!"

The prefects filed out, until Hermione, Ron, Malfoy, and Zabini were the only ones left in the room. Ron was heading to the door, though, where he was in conversation with Luna Lovegood, and Zabini was also making his way there.

"Allow me, Granger." Said Malfoy, extending a hand towards her book bag.

Hermione adjusted its place on her shoulder and said, "No, thank you." She looked up and caught Zabini's eye, where he had paused at the doorway to see their interaction. He cocked an eyebrow and smirked at her before exiting the room.

"So…" began Malfoy, "you going to Hogsmeade tomorrow?"

"Yes, Malfoy, I am."

"Me too." He replied. "Maybe I'll see you there, Granger."

Exasperated, and more than a little bit suspicious, Hermione replied, "I don't know what you're up to, Malfoy, but you had better stop."

"I'm not up to any—

"Just sod _off_!" she exclaimed as she strode out the door and into the hallway where Ron and Luna were waiting for her.

As the three of them made their way to their respective common rooms (Hermione electing to go to Gryffindor Tower instead of the Head's Tower), Ron remarked, "What was that in the meeting, Hermione? Malfoy is definitely up to something."

"You know, Ron," Hermione began, fixing him with a serious look, "I have no idea what he's thinking."

Draco sighed dejectedly and slumped down into a sitting position in the hallway.

"That was tough, mate," said Blaise, clapping him on the shoulder before sitting down next to him. "You can't give up though. This is just the beginning, mate, and it's the hardest part."

"I just didn't think it'd be so hard."

"Nothing worth anything is ever easy." Blaise stood and left, leaving Draco alone to his thoughts.

Suddenly, Draco stood up, determination bright in his eyes. He knew exactly what he was going to do to try and fix this, and get him finally on the right track to winning Hermione's affection.

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A word for my readers:  
**lilian**: Thank you! The Plan will be revealed as we progress further and further into the story, and that's all I really can say about it.

**White-Pink-Fluffy-Strawberriez**: I'm glad you like it (: Sorry it took me so long to update (please read the Author's Note after all the responses to comments to find out why exactly I haven't updated), but finally I did.

**Twylyght**: First of all, I must say, I really like your penname! Thanks for your kind words! I'm trying to stay original with this story, please see my Author's Note at the end of this for more info.

**Demoness-MarlstonWells69ner**: I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait to see if Blaise is falling for Hermione or not. Please keep reading!

**whisperslove**: I plan on doing so!

**dogstar-ebony**: Thank you very much! I'm glad you like it so much, and I'm really sorry for being horribly slow. Please see the Author's Note.

**Mariko**: I'm glad you like it, even if it's not what you're used to. Ginny will have a role in all this, later on, but worry not, because it's pretty much Blaise's show.

**Fallenwings11**: Thank you for reading!

**Jex**: Thank you!

**grace**: Sorry to have kept you waiting for so long ):

**Twitchy the Squirrel**: I'm afraid I don't quite have the pleasure of understanding what you meant by Blaise being fanon. That's mostly because I don't think he has an expected role in fanfiction, but yeah. I'm sure Blaise will slip into more Italian as the story progresses.

**clarinet-alto-4ever**: Thank you!

**mrs.twizzler**: Thank you!

**Babiiee-Z**: I finally finished this chapter! Please see my Author's Note at the bottom (:

**Gueneviere**: I hope you liked this chapter.

**Junsui**: Thank you for your words. Please see the Author's Note; I think it'll explain everything…

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Author's Note: I hope you all read this, because it's kind of important. First of all, I'd like to APOLOGIZE for taking pretty much FOREVER to update! This chapter was more than my usual bout of laziness, however. I didn't like this chapter much, at all. It's more a filler chapter, in my opinion, because it's the in-between of an action packed beginning of the story (and the introduction to Blaise's plan) to the action packed beginning/implementation of Draco's plan that you'll see in the next chapter, should you choose to continue reading this. So, I'm sorry if you didn't like this chapter, but I promise you, it'll get interesting again soon. Well, at the rate I update, maybe not so soon… 

Which leads me to my next item of discussion: I would like to know if any of you reading this would be interested in being a sort of Beta for this. I think that someone pestering me every-so-often would help me get my act together regarding this fic so that you guys can read a new chapter way more often than you get to read one now. Please let me know if you're interested (e-mail me at: **acornmoose AT**** gmail DOT com**), I would be eternally grateful (:

Some of you may be wondering why you got an alert for an updated chapter three of this story about a week or two ago. That was accidental, and I assure you, will not happen again. This time, your alert function thing is working legitimately.

All that being said, I'm off to Italy and London for six weeks of summer school and stuff.

I hope you all are having a lovely summer break! And thank you, once again for reading. See you next chapter (which I've already begun writing)!


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